This lavishly illustrated book introduces the general public and scholarly audience alike to one of the great collections of Italian paintings, with examples of major works dating from the 12th to the 18th centuries. The volume presents fifty paintings, many with color details and comparative illustrations. Introductions to each chronological section situate individual works of art within the artistic and stylistic developments of the period. Signature pieces featured in this volume include Virgin and Child with Saints and Angels , ca. 1340-45, by Pietro Lorenzetti; The Ideal City , ca. 1480-84, attributed to Fra Carnavale; Madonna and Child with Saints and Three Venetian Procurators , 1510 by Giovanni Bellini and workshop; Madonna of the Candelabra , ca. 1513, by Raphael and workshop; and Portrait of Countess Livia da Porto Thiene and Her Daughter Porzia , ca. 1551, by Veronese. Taken together, these paintings constitute a fabulous historical journey through seven centuries of Italian art. A select bibliography provides both standard reference sources and a selection of the most important recent books and articles on each work and artist featured in the book.

Masterpieces of Italian Design is an overview of the past two centuries in Italian design and manufacturing. This new title documents the 110 most pioneering designs to come out of Italy, and explains why, with stunning images (including rare archival photographs, illustrations and patent drawings) and explanatory texts.

Art history need not be dry or dull, as O'Reilly's book shows. Featuring 90 full-color photos of many of the masterpieces of the movement, the book delves into the work of such masters as Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, Botticelli, and Fra Angelico. Full-color photos and illustrations.

"This book introduces, for the first time in English, a fascinating yet strangely neglected aspect of Italian Renaissance art. During the quattrocento painting became more popular and probably more beautiful than at any time before or since. House interiors and furniture were painted with exotic stories and symbols, one of the most fashionable possessions in the grandest room in the palazzo being the painted cassone or marriage chest." /